In the first half of the 19th century, a two-story house belonging to merchant Zimin stood on this site. In 1846, it was rebuilt by architect Kulakov. Later, the house belonged to second guild merchant Abramov, who opened a tavern here. In 1899, the house was purchased by architect Nikolai Nikitich Nikonov, who rebuilt it into a five-story building. Kolokolnaya Street is one of those short streets in Petersburg that you sometimes come across in the city, walk from beginning to end, and soon forget their names. It clearly lies in the shadow of the famous Vladimir Cathedral and the streets it connects – Marata and Vladimir Avenue. The orphanage and numerous income houses that once stood here, of course, could not create a notable reputation. However, house No. 11 will definitely catch your eye – and it will be difficult to immediately appreciate all the small details with which its decoration is richly adorned. Russian motifs are easily recognized in the luxurious exterior of the facade. The decor is created by plaster finishes, exposed brickwork, and multicolored tiles scattered in separate patches across the building. The tiniest details, down to the roof and attic exits, decorated with porticos and columns, are worked out in multicolored ceramics. Bright majolica inserts on the balcony and the ornamentation around the windows invite close examination. The ceramic decor was made at the Mirgorod Art and Industrial School named after N.V. Gogol in the Poltava province, with which Nikonov closely cooperated and often involved in his projects. In this school, practical classes involved fulfilling real orders.

The style to which house No. 11 on Kolokolnaya Street belongs is commonly considered Neo-Russian. This architectural trend became widespread at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries and is marked by a turn to motifs of ancient Russian architecture in order to revive national traditions and the distinctiveness of Russian culture. Its distinction from the closely related "Russian" (or "pseudo-Russian") style of the same period lies in moving away from crude copying and even borrowing of elements in favor of generalizing forms and subtle stylization of prototypes. The ceramic decor of Nikonov’s income house in Saint Petersburg has great artistic value and is undoubtedly a monument of decorative-applied art and artistic industry of the late 19th – early 20th centuries.

Nikolai Nikitich Nikonov is one of the well-known architects of Saint Petersburg at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. He worked extensively and productively, especially in the field of church architecture. He was born on April 8, 1849, into a peasant family in the village of Onofrevo, Poshekhonsky Uyezd, Yaroslavl Province. In October 1872, he was admitted as a free listener to the Academy of Arts. In 1881, he was expelled for irregular attendance of classes. He died in 1918 in Samara, where he lived and worked for quite a long time. The facade of the house had long needed serious repair and restoration. The majolica ceramic pilaster under the balcony was noticeably damaged, and the decoration of its lower part was lost. Moreover, on December 15, 2009, a severe fire broke out in the house, which, fortunately, did not affect the central part of the building. The stained glass, central staircase, and apartments facing Kolokolnaya Street were unharmed.

At the gates leading to the courtyard, you can often meet residents of the house. If you politely ask, they will let you inside, and you will be able to examine the interior details of the house. Especially noticeable is the five-story tower made of yellow brick, which protrudes deeply inward.

http://www.ipetersburg.ru/dom-na-kolokolnoy-ulice/

https://www.citywalls.ru/house340.html